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Jerry Lewis Was A Jerk

First of all was he some sort of icon?

I watched "What's My Line," and Arlene comes out and says they have a "secret mystery panelist" so she can't introduce the person next to here, but does introduce Arlene. Arlene comes out and says she doesn't know who it is, but introduced Elmer Fudd, I mean Bennett.

Bennet says he doesn't know who the panelist is and introduces John Daly, who reveals it to be Jerry Lewis. And the crowd goes wild.

Jerry sucks at the game, but they have a lady who sells reducing pills, and the lady is fat.

So Arlene, Dorothy and Bennett, narrow it down to something you "eat." Then Jerry out of turns blurts out, "if she's selling it, it must be reducing pills." Which it is. And then after getting it, embarrassing her, he says, "Hey John I have another question for her, how come she doesn't use her product."

The lady says, "I'll have you know Mr Lewis, I've lost 40 pounds using these pills and plan to lose another 50."

And Jerry says, "You'd be better off gaining the 50 pounds, that way you could play tackle on the Giants."

by Anonymousreply 73July 18, 2019 3:42 PM

He had a rapid fire wit. Maybe not pc today but at the time it was very much in vogue. Can’t judge him by today’s evolved, and often ridiculous, comedy standards. He was a true genius, not to mention a humanitarian for the ages. I can’t think of any other celebrity devoting 50 years of blood, sweat and tears to one charitable organization. Again he may not have been a box of kittens personally, but give the man his due.

by Anonymousreply 1December 18, 2018 3:05 PM

He's a DLer.

by Anonymousreply 2December 18, 2018 3:06 PM

He gave of his resources charitably and that's commendable, but if the woman described in OP's scenario was a real person and not an actress paid to set up Lewis' cruel one-liners, I'd have gone over and kicked him in the nuts the second the show signed off the air.

by Anonymousreply 3December 18, 2018 3:25 PM

Yeah, he was a racist, bully, etc.

He was used to extreme roasting with his Rat Pack buddies -- but they were douchebags.

by Anonymousreply 4December 18, 2018 3:49 PM

FWIW, I didn't find him as odious as the people said he would be in THE KING OF COMEDY. He was short tempered and not personable, but wasn't evil by any means.

by Anonymousreply 5December 19, 2018 5:23 PM

R1 = Jerry Lewis

by Anonymousreply 6December 19, 2018 5:27 PM

He was very talented, but a horrible person. He cheated on his wife constantly and loved to humiliate his children in public by berating them.

You don't get excused from being a bad person because you were a good comic. Neither now nor in the past. Shitty is as shitty does.

by Anonymousreply 7December 19, 2018 5:29 PM

WE LOVED HIM...

FRANCE

by Anonymousreply 8December 19, 2018 5:41 PM

When he was totally in his element, in the best Martin and Lewis movies and the best of his solo movies, Jerry was legitimately old school funny. But he went totally out of style after the 60s. He wasn't quite as unhip as he could've been though, remember he did King of Comedy.

by Anonymousreply 9December 19, 2018 5:43 PM

Jerry's annual, weepy telethon raised money to fight muscular dystrophy, but "Jerry's Kids" eventually got sick of him slobbering over them and treating them as pitiful objects. It ended in 2011.

See link.

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by Anonymousreply 10December 19, 2018 5:56 PM

Yeah, he was a total bastard. He deserved everything bad that ever happened to him.

by Anonymousreply 11December 19, 2018 8:10 PM

He was a prick, and I should know.

by Anonymousreply 12December 19, 2018 8:15 PM

Now that Lewis is dead will we ever get to see "The Day The Clown Cried"? Lewis starred and directed the film about a clown in a concentration camp who makes little Jewish kids laugh and eventually leads them into a gas chamber.

The handful of people who've seen the legendary film were stunned by its awfulness and Lewis himself called it bad work and suppressed it.

by Anonymousreply 13December 21, 2018 7:16 AM

Even as a kid, I couldn't stand him, never thought he was finny in the least. No one ever seemed to notice that his comedy was based on ridiculing mentally retarded people. But I supposed he was a modern day version of the village jester who amused the townspeople with his silliness because it was the only way he could make a living.

by Anonymousreply 14December 21, 2018 7:38 AM

Funny, not finny. I never expected him to be a fish.

by Anonymousreply 15December 21, 2018 7:39 AM

Lewis was an exception among movie stars. With most of them, their star persona bore at least a little resemblance to their real selves, but Lewis was actually the opposite of the manchild schtick that made him famous. In the movies he played an innocent who had no idea what he was saying, in real life he was a nasty, demanding, narcissistic, ambitious cunt of a man.

And possibly gay, he seems to have worshipped and adored Dean Martin. Who got away from Lewis as soon as he established a career in his own right, and stayed away.

by Anonymousreply 16December 21, 2018 7:44 AM

He was a brilliant actor. Brilliant!! He should have won an Oscar!

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by Anonymousreply 17December 21, 2018 7:58 AM

Martin was far more talented anyway.

by Anonymousreply 18December 21, 2018 8:54 AM

R13 Before he died, Jerry donated a print to the Library of Congress with the stipulation that it not be shown until 2024.

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by Anonymousreply 19December 21, 2018 9:04 AM

I HAVE to see this film!!!

by Anonymousreply 20December 21, 2018 9:48 AM

Guilty, but true. I thought he was very sexy in his salad days. Very.

However, he had the soul of a sadist.

by Anonymousreply 21December 21, 2018 9:52 AM

Poor people are sad

by Anonymousreply 22December 21, 2018 10:09 AM

Didn't leave a dime to his biological children, everything to his widow and a daughter they had adopted.

by Anonymousreply 23December 21, 2018 10:22 AM

In this Oscar clip, why exactly did he feel it necessary for Susan Hayward to return to the stage?

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by Anonymousreply 24December 21, 2018 10:32 AM

The Day the Clown Cried was remade in 1997. It was retitled "A Beautiful Life".

by Anonymousreply 25December 21, 2018 3:57 PM

He never got over losing the love of his life, Dean Martin.

by Anonymousreply 26December 21, 2018 4:26 PM

If I remember correctly --and maybe I don't -- the producers seized all the original negative materials of The Day the Clown Cried because Lewis was way over budget and way behind schedule, which is why the film was cancelled during shooting. Supposedly all that ended up in a vault somewhere and no one knows where it is now.

What Lewis had were some original negative dupes, some deleted scenes, alternative takes and extraneous materials which he managed to get into a very rough cut that was put onto VHS and that's what has been seen. Supposedly Lewis was at the height of his drug addictions, prescription and otherwise, when he took on the project.

Very open to correction.

by Anonymousreply 27December 21, 2018 11:26 PM

R27 here. In the early 1990s there was a Broadway revival of Damn Yankees starring Bebe Neuwirth and Victor Garber. It was a hit and ran long enough to need a replacement cast. Lewis took over for Garber.

Lewis's performance was broad, cartoony and generally awful. I saw it. But his name added another year to the Broadway run and he then lead the national tour, which was highly successful.

by Anonymousreply 28December 21, 2018 11:48 PM

In her hilarious memoir MY FIRST 2,000 MEN, Liz Renay describes sex with Jerry Lewis: she would strut around nude in high heels while he would jack off into a piece of white shag carpet he kept in his pocket. She said it was his way of being "faithful" to his wife.

by Anonymousreply 29December 21, 2018 11:57 PM

OP, fat shaming back in the day was the norm, certainly not unique to Jerry Lewis.

by Anonymousreply 30December 22, 2018 12:02 AM

JERK!

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by Anonymousreply 31December 22, 2018 12:16 AM

Gary Lewis And The Playboys (Gary Lewis being Jerry's son) had a number of big hits in the mid to late 1960's. "This Diamond Ring" was their first and biggest hit, went to #1 and earned them a gold record. It was actually quite a good song.

by Anonymousreply 32December 22, 2018 12:19 AM

Didn't he disinherit several of his children?

by Anonymousreply 33December 22, 2018 12:21 AM

His son, singer Gary Lewis. He's 73 now.

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by Anonymousreply 34December 22, 2018 12:26 AM

R15 Dean Martin didn't like Lewis's touchy-feely ways. That's where the gay rumors originated.

by Anonymousreply 35December 22, 2018 12:29 AM

Jerry and his son Gary back in the day.

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by Anonymousreply 36December 22, 2018 12:30 AM

Jerry Lewis looking sexy here. His real name was Joseph Levitch.

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by Anonymousreply 37December 22, 2018 12:35 AM

Jerry's brand of humor, The Nutty Professor.

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by Anonymousreply 38December 22, 2018 12:39 AM

R29 So, he had a cumRUG?

by Anonymousreply 39December 22, 2018 12:47 AM

R29, I just finished that book today. My partner tracked down an autographed copy and gave it to me as an early Christmas present.

by Anonymousreply 40December 22, 2018 2:29 AM

When I was a preschooler my older teen sister tried to convince me that Shari Lewis was Jerry Lewis in drag. i guess she resented babysitting me.

by Anonymousreply 41December 22, 2018 2:38 AM

I think he had a cameo in “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World”. He plays a goofy driver who intentionally runs over Spencer Tracy’s hat.

by Anonymousreply 42December 22, 2018 2:45 AM

When Dean broke up the comedy team of Martin and Lewis in 1956, he did not see Lewis again until sometime in the 1970's, when they had a brief "reunion" during Lewis' telethon. Martin walked on the stage and surprised him. From all accounts, Martin was sick to death of being the straight man to Lewis' tired old "hey lady" schtick and never getting credit for his own talent. His career really took off after the split. Lewis was overbearing, obnoxious, needy and quite possibly gay, yes, due to the way he fawned over Martin. He always spoke of Martin in deep psychological terms (the logistics of their "relationship") as if they had been an old married couple. Not sure if it was hero worship or what the heck it was. But it was bizarre.

by Anonymousreply 43December 22, 2018 3:16 AM

He was recently on Password reruns for a week, playing against Audrey Meadows, who was lovely and gracious to him; but he was an obnoxious jerk who practically derailed the game, always trying to make himself the center of attention.

He calmed down a bit by the fifth episode but it wasn't a pleasant week.

Also, I recently saw a couple of kinescopes of The Colgate Comedy Hour starring Martin & Lewis and it was nearly unwatchable. His mugging and schtick has not aged well and I cringed throughout.

by Anonymousreply 44December 22, 2018 3:19 AM

My business partner like to call us Lewis and Martin. Everyone says I am Martin. The dynamics 43 described is exactly how it is with us. I overlook A LOT of attention seeking behavior. I love and appreciate the partnership, but sometimes feel like screaming.

by Anonymousreply 45December 22, 2018 3:36 AM

Blood, sweat, and tears....on his yearly telethon? Please, he was acting.

by Anonymousreply 46December 22, 2018 3:52 AM

I think Jerry was in love with Dean.

by Anonymousreply 47December 22, 2018 3:55 AM

"Now that Lewis is dead will we ever get to see "The Day The Clown Cried"?"

Who would WANT to see it? The actor Harry Shearer somehow managed to see it and he likened it to “a painting on black velvet of Auschwitz.” It was a bad movie and in extremely poor taste. But as it turns out Jerry Lewis was ahead of his time. Many years later Roberto Benigni came out with "Life Is Beautiful" where he mugs and capers through the horrors of the Holocaust, making it out as a "game" in order to spare his son the reality of their situation. Critics tended to fawn over the " feel good Holocaust weepie" but some were not as enchanted and thought it diminished the suffering of Holocaust victim. The over-praised, overrated film won Best Foreign Language film at the Oscars and in one of the worst Oscar travesties in history Roberto Benigni won Best Actor. I myself thought the movie was crap.

by Anonymousreply 48December 22, 2018 4:05 AM

"Lewis was overbearing, obnoxious, needy and quite possibly gay, yes, due to the way he fawned over Martin."

Oh for Christ's sake, Jerry Lewis wasn't gay. In fact, he was homophobic. He just talked in florid terms of his love for Dean Martin, his great comedy partner. That was just his talk.

by Anonymousreply 49December 22, 2018 4:08 AM

This is the best book ever written about Jerry Lewis: "King Of Comedy - The Life And Art Of Jerry Lewis" by Shawn Levy. He tells everything, warts and all. And brutally honest at times. Pulls no punches. Remarkable book that I have in my collection. Recommended.

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by Anonymousreply 50December 22, 2018 4:16 AM

R24 it was Hayward’s 5th nomination and finally a win so Lewis I guess felt she deserved an extra ovation. Plus the show was running short that year. This too might’ve been a way of adding a few seconds to it.

by Anonymousreply 51December 22, 2018 4:36 AM

LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY-deeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

by Anonymousreply 52December 22, 2018 4:44 AM

R49 is a closeted lesbian

by Anonymousreply 53December 22, 2018 4:48 AM

How was Jerry a racist?

by Anonymousreply 54December 22, 2018 4:59 AM

What makes a guy so abundantly creative and on top of his game so nasty and rancid? He was impossible and everyone younger than him in the biz has an awful "I had to deal with Jerry Lewis" story to tell. He seems not to have any appreciation for his gifts, career, and long life.

by Anonymousreply 55December 22, 2018 5:18 AM

I've never heard a straight man talk about another man the way Lewis talks about Martin. In his later years he said "I LOVED him" to interviewers, and went on and on about his feelings towards his ex-partner.

So of course any adult with a clue has to wonder if Lewis is gay, after hearing that. How could one not?

Not that I ever heard any rumors about Lewis and other men, and you bitches have all the gossip from the studio era back to the reign of Ethelred the Unready. So maybe Lewis was so far in the closet he was living in Mr. Tumnus's cave and Martin was the one man who managed to awaken his feelings, or maybe Lewis's feelings towards Martin weren't sexual at all. Maybe he just really wanted the approval of the cool Martin, or he spent his whole life resenting Martin for dumping him and built that into a tragedy of him being the good loving partner who was treated unfairly. Who the hell knows what goes on the mind of a toxic narcissist.

by Anonymousreply 56December 22, 2018 6:18 AM

I never liked his humor, even when I was a kid. Back then, before this PC world, comics let loose on the insults (Don Rickles was king).. not sparing any feelings. Now, comics are very limited and censored in their humor. He wasn't a nice guy, and treated people like shit, for the most part.

by Anonymousreply 57December 22, 2018 12:25 PM

This is a book that Jerry Lewis wrote: "Dean & Me (A Love Story)". Make of it what you want to.

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by Anonymousreply 58December 22, 2018 2:31 PM

I bet that was a one-sided love story. It would be fascinating to know what Dean REALLY thought of Jerry but that is now lost to time. Or in the private memories of those aged remaining who were close to Dean.

by Anonymousreply 59December 22, 2018 2:34 PM

Dean was so closed off. One of those guys that didn’t seem to have deep thoughts on anything.

by Anonymousreply 60December 22, 2018 2:38 PM

R53 has a few screws loose. "Closeted lesbian?" Definitely some mental disturbance there.

by Anonymousreply 61December 22, 2018 4:43 PM

"So of course any adult with a clue has to wonder if Lewis is gay, after hearing that. How could one not?"

So if a man says he loves another man that must surely be proof he's homosexual? That's pretty stupid. By the way, Jerry Lewis called Ed McMahon "my pussycat" and kissed Frank Sinatra on one of the telethons. Does they mean he had homosexual love for them, too?

by Anonymousreply 62December 22, 2018 4:46 PM

Sad that men can't express any kind of love for another man without it somehow involving doublebarrel dicksucking, power-bottoming and rimming.

by Anonymousreply 63December 22, 2018 4:50 PM

The TV movie about Martin & Lewis with Sean Hayes as Jerry was pretty good and oddly enough showing Lewis was responsible for derailing the partnership.

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by Anonymousreply 64December 22, 2018 6:21 PM

I saw Jerry a bit before he died at an “Evening With” kind of performance. It was ultimately just a sad cash grab. Aside from introducing numerous old clips in the most basic fashion “Here I am with Carol Burnet,” he told no amusing anecdotes, barely even provided any context. It was boring, and you cold see in condensed form how his performances became more & more cruel and less & less funny as the 70’s & 80’s progressed.

The REAL low-light, however, was the Q & A segment. The audience was full of people who LOVED him -so the “questions” were mostly rambling compliments from star struck middle age people overwhelmed by being in the presence of their idol. He treated each and every one of them like crap, he was nasty, short and often insulting.

He put no effort into creating any kind of an entertaining evening and his age isn’t really excuse - I also saw Don Rickles perform shortly before his death and the guy was still funny, still doing what you would expect Don Rickles to do if you shell out money for a ticket. I can understand Jerry being a bitter, tired old crank - but then don’t charge your fans to witness it.

by Anonymousreply 65December 22, 2018 7:05 PM

"So if a man says he loves another man that must surely be proof he's homosexual?"

No, it's not proof. But it certainly raises the question.

by Anonymousreply 66December 23, 2018 12:11 AM

"No, it's not proof. But it certainly raises the question."

Why should it raise the question?

by Anonymousreply 67December 23, 2018 12:58 AM

Got up early and flipping through the TV I landed on the Golf channel where "The Caddy" was playing. I was able to make it through 30 minutes before I finally gave up. I can't believe Lewis built an entire career on that persona.

by Anonymousreply 68December 23, 2018 1:45 PM

He told her I guess, but that wasn't nice.

by Anonymousreply 69July 18, 2019 7:01 AM

When I was a child my mother took me with my first cheapie Kodak to the east coast premiere of one of his films. As part of the proceedings he was to do a performance on the stage before the film. Maybe halfway though his set I worked up the nerve to move forward to try to get some pictures of Jerry so there I was in the theater's dark aisle when from the stage he sees me. Jerry stopped the show and posed for me personally, some scrawny kid whose face he can't even distinguish. Maybe I'm just a cheap date but Jerry is OK in my book.

[quote] a modern day version of the village jester who amused the townspeople with his silliness because it was the only way he could make a living.

This just might be a little more than the village jester might manage.

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by Anonymousreply 70July 18, 2019 7:57 AM

I met him once. He was a vile, overbearing self-important little man

by Anonymousreply 71July 18, 2019 8:02 AM

Whenever I hear stories about how awful Jerry Lewis was, I think of the saying, "hurt people hurt people". All the attention seeking bafoonery, asshole behavior and angry "comedy" at others' expense. It just reeks of crippling insecurity and deep psychic wounds.

by Anonymousreply 72July 18, 2019 9:06 AM

[quote]All the attention seeking bafoonery,

Oh, dear!

by Anonymousreply 73July 18, 2019 3:42 PM
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